The Algonquin Garden Club has successfully transformed a small plot of land in the Dixie Briggs Fromm Nature Preserve in Dundee Township into a “mini-forest,” the first of its kind in the area.

On Oct. 25, the club, along with 27 volunteers, used the so-called Miyawaki method to plant more than 200 native trees, shrubs and plants in a densely packed area to promote a fast-growing forest that will be self-sustaining. Due to increased community support, the project footprint expanded from its original 600-square-foot plan to 936 square feet, according to an Algonquin Garden Club news release.

Miyawaki forests are a relatively new idea in America, with only a handful found in Illinois, including the first in the state in south suburban Markham, as well as in Indiana and Oregon, Garden Club President Cynthia Germata said.

The forest is planted with dozens of native and pollinator-friendly plants, including oak, redbud and scarlet hawthorn trees and shrubs like hazelnut, elderberry and gooseberry varieties.

In total, the Algonquin Garden Club secured $6,100 in grants and in-kind contributions from Nicor Gas Charitable Giving, The Nature Conservancy, Espoma, Ames Tools, Ziegler’s Ace Hardware and Dickson Design Studio. The funds helped cover plant purchases, compost delivery, fencing and future signage.

Since vegetation is planted closely together, growth is expected to skyrocket. In about three years, the 2-foot-high trees may get to be as 10 feet tall.

“They will grow 10 times faster than any other trees planted in a forest because of the way they are planted,” Germata said. “The roots commingle and communicate with each other, and they are just as happy as a clam.”

Even more plants will be added in the spring, as the club plans to plant approximately 70 herbaceous flowering plants, according to the release.

The club plans for this to be the first of many new mini-forests in the northern Illinois area, helping to restore tree canopy coverage.

“We’re hoping more towns, more garden clubs, communities catch on to this process, because we certainly need more trees, and we need the right kind of trees,” club member and Dundee Township Open Lands steward Carol Weinhammer said.

In the meantime, the club is dedicated to “long-term monitoring and maintenance,” according to the release.

The Algonquin Garden Club is a nonprofit organization that has been around since 1929. The working club of 23 members, with more than half in their 80s, maintains multiple gardens in the village, Weinhammer said.